Artist helps plant more trees after Sycamore Gap felling

The tree was felled in September 2023 and North Yorkshire-based artist Lucy Pittaway was inundated with requests to immortalise the tree in one of her paintings.

At first reluctant, Ms Pittaway agreed only if its creation could become a 'legacy' to the tree, and contribute positively to the environment and wider community.

The resulting painting, depicting the centuries-old tree with a Northern Lights backdrop, struck a chord with the public and thousands of prints have now been sold online and in Ms Pittaway's galleries across North Yorkshire and the Lakes including Keswick and Bowness-on-Windermere.

The artist and her team came up with the idea of making a donation for every print sold to plant new trees and create a publicly accessible area of woodland as a celebration of nature and art and a lasting legacy of the Sycamore Gap tree.

Lucy at the easel (Image: Supplied) In partnership with Swinton Estate, whose trees, like many across the country, have been badly affected by larch tree blight in recent years, this new woodland is now 'taking shape'.

Donations from the sales of the Sycamore Gap painting have already contributed more than 1,000 trees including sycamore, oak, rowan, hazel and other native trees.

These have been planted close to the Druid’s Temple near Masham with 400 more plantings scheduled later this year.

Over time the woodland trail created will include sculptures, art resources and other attractions – bringing to life Ms Pittaway's vision for a fitting memorial to the Sycamore Gap tree which had stood alongside Hadrian’s Wall for 200 years.

Lucy and the completed painting of the Sycamore Gap tree (Image: Supplied) The artist said: "Like everyone else I was so saddened to hear about the felling of the tree.

"To now see this new woodland coming to life is wonderful and I’m so grateful to everyone who has helped us come this far.

"I hope this is an area that can be used for relaxation for generations to come.

“Thanks to everyone’s generosity and interest in the painting, we have thousands of other trees still to plant in a variety of locations and we’re excited to be able to continually contribute to the community around us and enhance the environment at the same time.

"If what we are doing can inspire people’s interest in art and the countryside then the legacy of the Sycamore Gap tree will be a positive one."